


Not My Father

by SmartCoffee



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man - All Media Types
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-26
Updated: 2021-02-28
Packaged: 2021-03-10 23:54:10
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 2,358
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28341975
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SmartCoffee/pseuds/SmartCoffee
Summary: It's pretty fun to imagine the joy Tony can have pretending to be Peter's dad, but they both know very well that Peter's dad is gone. I'm exploring what that might mean to these characters. MJ is a lead character. She calls Peter out on some of his BS because she's spunky.
Relationships: Peter Parker/Mary Jane Watson
Comments: 2
Kudos: 7





	1. Chapter 1

“I’m too old to pretend. You’re not my father!” yelled Peter. 

“You’re right. And I’m glad because if I were your father, I’d be dead,” yelled Tony. 

Peter hissed, “Getttt outtt.” 

Aunt May had heard enough, “Mister Stark, with all due respect, I think it would be best for you to leave.” 

Tony was suddenly cooling off and realizing what he had said but it was too late. He slumped his shoulders and left. 

The next day, Tony called May. “Can you tell me what’s up with him?” he asked. 

May replied, “Geez, where should I start? The poor kid’s had the week from hell. You’ve probably been following the stories about Doc Ock.” 

“Yeah. He broke out of prison and looted 3 nuclear plants.” 

“Right. I think Peter knows more about it, but he isn’t talking. But that’s not all,” said May. 

“What else?” asked Tony. 

May answered, “His English teacher told me he’s at risk of failing. All those nights he spends patrolling the city? Well, they don’t leave much time for reading assignments and writing papers.” 

“I forget sometimes that Peter’s a high school student,” said Tony. 

“I never forget that.” said May. She continued, “Then there’s MJ.” 

“Oh, don’t tell me,” started Tony, suspecting where this was going. 

“On Wednesday, at the end of school, a boy named Paul came to MJ’s locker and asked her out to the Winter Dance. Peter happened to be in the next room for the Academic Decathlon team and he overheard.” 

“But I thought they were exclusive?” said Tony. 

“What can I tell you? It’s high school,” said May. 

“This all happened in one week!?” asked a flabbergasted Tony. 

“Technically nine days, but yeah, more or less.” said Aunt May. 

“So where is he now?” 

“He’s in bed, under a pile of two comforters and four pillows.” 


	2. Chapter 2

Spiderman swung though Midtown at a breakneck pace. He had to get to the Royal Hilton Hotel.

He launched himself furiously, at one point missing a brownstone by the width of a hand. But MJ was on the line and so was the safety of New York City.

Earlier that day, Peter was in a kind of monastic mode. He was alone in his room and only left to visit the bathroom or the kitchen. But like any red-blooded American teenager, he still had his phone by his side. 

His best friend Ned had been begging him to join him at the dance. Against all odds, Ned had found a date in his Asian history class. “Peter, c’mon, don’t be lame. It’ll be fun. Most of our class will be there. You could come for half an hour and then take the subway if you don’t like it.”

Yet Ned had sent a very different call hours later. “Hey, we need you here. This is all wrong. This is some Columbine shit.” DROP THAT PHONE!!!! krrrucck.

Peter leapt into action and headed for the Royal Hilton, the venue for the Winter Dance. Ned and MJ were both there. So was that loser Paul that MJ was going out with, but that didn’t matter. 

There was a man on the roof of the building across the street from the Hilton. He had a black turtleneck and a long precision rifle.

A quick assessment revealed three men outside and at least three more inside. Two of them had M-16s, the standard weapon of the U.S. Army infantry.

“Crap! It’s six guys with guns against me. And there are civilians all over the place. Oh, I’ve got a crazy idea,” Spiderman thought.

In the main ballroom, two gunmen were positioned on opposite sides of the room. The ballroom had recessed light bulbs running in lines around the frame of the room. Spiderman was crawling on the ceiling and no one noticed him yet. He unscrewed one bulb and let it crash to the floor. Both gunmen shifted their attention to the ceiling. While they were distracted, Spiderman caught both guns in his webbing.

“Spiderman! Hey it’s Spiderman! We’re saved,” yelled Paul.

Goddamned Paul. There went the cover of surprise.

The last gunman let out a wild volley of fire.

“Everyone, down to the floor! Now!” instructed Spiderman.

Spiderman ran to the gunman and kneed him in the abdomen. The gunman bent over and lost his grip on the gun.

Fire trucks and ambulances brought the kids home from the dance. There were only minor cuts and scrapes.

Spiderman was about to leave when he noticed another ballroom down the hall. “Society of Nuclear Physicists and Engineers.” Three women and seven men were lying dead on the floor, apparently strangled.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Definitely short but I hope you find it short and sweet

The next morning, Peter went to MJ’s apartment in a blue shirt and jeans. He felt strange ringing her bell. Would she let him in? Would she send him away? Was she still angry about their breakup?

“I’ll be down in a minute, Peter,” MJ said brightly.

The tone of her voice filled him with hope but he tried to hold back.

She came down a flight of stairs wearing a white button-down shirt, black leggings, and two funky orange bracelets. 

He gave her a big hug and said, “Ohmigod. I’m just so glad you’re alright.”

“I might not be if it wasn’t for you,” she said.

“Whaddaya mean? I didn’t even go to the dance,” tried Peter.

“Three different channels covered it. The video shows webbing everywhere,” MJ replied.

“Anyway, I’m just happy it worked out. I’d hate to lose a friend -” and suddenly he couldn’t finish the sentence.

MJ got very serious, “I need to explain something. The thing about Paul is, it’s not that he’s better than you. In love, you don't always want the perfect ten. Being with a ten means you have to be a ten and I'm not sure I can handle that. Like, maybe in a few years you’ll be hooking up with an Avenger or a super-spy or a princess. And there’s no way I could compete with any of that.”

“Oh MJ, I didn’t know that was what you were thinking. But listen, I have thought about that but from the opposite side, kind of. People are starting to hear about (whispers) Spiderman (resumes normal volume) and that’s great. But if I was with a girl who was, I don’t know, a groupie, that would just turn my stomach. Even if it was a girl with super powers, it still wouldn’t feel real. But you know me. You know the person I am as soon as I wake up in the morning. And that's why I want you so badly,” said Peter.

MJ took his hand and interlaced her fingers with his. He brought her palm to his mouth and kissed it.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A little coffee to perk things up

“Can we go to Fourbucks and get drinks?” asked Mary Jane. 

“Sure Babe, but we might have to cut back on the dates.”

“Are you trying to say I’m getting fat?”

Peter jumped, “No, no, no. It’s the money. These drinks are so overpriced.”

“But aren’t I worth it?” MJ smiled coyly. 

“Nah,” Peter replied with a grin. 

She had a caramel latte and he had an Americano. Captain America once told Peter that American soldiers invented the Americano. When our guys were stationed in Italy, they’d see espresso and think it was coffee. Espresso is very strong and comes in tiny cups. They wanted something like the coffee back home that was mild and came in a bigger cup. The Italians figured out that they could just water down the espresso. So that’s why an Americano is a diluted espresso.

“Hey Peter, I’m so glad to see you,” said Tony Stark, who has just got in line.

Peter was baffled. What were the odds of running into him here? Also, doesn’t he have a personal assistant who gets him coffee?

“Hey. MJ. This is Tony Stark. He used to be my boss.”

“Pleasure to meet you, sir.” she said. 

Tony gestured to the door and Peter followed him.   
“Listen Peter, I’m sorry about how I left things with you. I had no right to bring up old painful memories.”  
Peter knew what to say, “I’m sorry too. I didn’t mean to disrespect you. I like having you in my life. Maybe it was just pride.”  
And just like that Peter and Tony were in a good place, Peter and MJ were madly in love and even the bustling city seemed calm.   
But then a masked figure hurled the orange bombs into the Fourbucks Coffee.


	5. Chapter 5

It was like Tony's brain split in two. One half was strategizing against Hobgoblin, trying to work out how he could take him down with a minimum of casualties and property damage.

The other half was replaying memories. His life was flashing before his eyes as it proverbially does before one dies. In Tony's case, he feared he was about to die on a pretty regular basis. 

He remembered being in prep school. He had a crush on a girl named Cindy Stevens. She had this long, feathery black hair and eyes with a tone like new honey. They were in speech class together. It was a class for public speaking, not stuttering or anything like that. The project was to give a presentation about a man or woman you admired. He wanted to pick someone whose life was all about love. He chose Saint Valentine. He explained to his class that there was a time when the Romans were so focused on war that they didn't even allow soldiers to marry. Saint Valentine performed secret weddings in defiance of the law. As he concluded his speech, he said, "If you are in love, for real, you should risk anything for love. Cindy Stevens, will you go to prom with me?"

Cindy said, "I'm sorry Tony. I can't. I just can't." And then she proceeded to give her presentation on the person she most admired, Ellen De Generes.

Meanwhile he was dodging bombs and falling steel beams. He was aiming plasma beams at Hobgoblin and taking cover where he could.

Once, Tony flew in the Mark VIII to Tijuana. He remembered a few things. Beautiful beaches, petite women with golden skin, Tequila, and a dent in the left shin of the suit. Rhodey and Pepper pushed him hard into rehab and follow-up with a 12-step program.


	6. Chapter 6

The rest of the whole Hobgoblin episode was rather dull. A couple lasers. A couple bombs. A flashbang. Finally Hobgoblin hovered away.

A few days later, Peter took MJ to Central Park. 

"Petah boy, do you have a plan?"

"I'm sorry. What now? I'm supposed to have a plan?" 

She opened her mahogany eyes a little wider. "After you graduate Metro Academy, where will you go? What do you wanna be when you grow up?"

"I mean, it kind of depends on where I get in. I don't know."

"You're brilliant. You have powerful friends. Do you really think there's a school where you can't get in?"

Peter smirked, "You're really sweet. But everyone has to apply and wait to hear if they got in. It's only in movies that people can just go wherever they feel like." 

"Okay, let's say for the sake of argument you get into NYU, that's doable, don't you think?" She goaded him.

"They always could say no. But okay, I'll play along. I could get in there," Peter said. "What was she up to?" he wondered.

"So what would you major in? You're always talking about different subjects - genetics, cell biology, quantum physics, cinematography, journalism. But you can't major in all of them."

"I could double major," he winked.

"Peter! You never take me seriously." She looked hurt.

He rubbed her back. "Hey. I'm sorry. I know. This is serious. Soon we won't be kids anymore."

"So what will you do?"

"I think I should pick one science subject and one subject that's more of an art. If I major in physics, I think I'll be required to take some other sciences just to be well-rounded. The art major will just be for me. Maybe I'll do physics and photography. Is that crazy?" His face became long and concerned.

"Actually, I think that's one of the most level-headed things you've said to me."

"Oh, what about you? What's your major going to be?"

"Poli Sci"

"Come again? I've never heard -"

"Geez Peter, political science. The art of power and persuasion. Statecraft."

"Ooh. You know, I really should take some coding too. I think I might have a natural talent for it."

Her brow furrowed, "Yeah coding is becoming really important nowadays. But why would you have a natural talent for it?"

"C'mon, you know I love web development."


	7. Chapter 7

Peter Parker woke up and he was tied to a chair. He felt wet and smelled urine. He looked around, seeing only moldy gray concrete.

"Ahh, Sleeping Beauty awakes. I've been dewoting my whole morning to you and hope it's not going to be a waste of my time," said a disembodied voice.

Peter said nothing.

"You're not going to talk to me? I can change that right quh-vick." 

Suddenly two giant blades like circular saws jutted out of the floor and went straight for Peter's feet. He tried to maneuver without the help of his hands. In the end, his left foot was unharmed but he had a painful cut in the pinky toe of his right foot.

"Fine! What do you want?" Peter growled.

"It's wery simple. You know Tony Stark. Stark has billions of dollars. I need a few million," said the voice. Peter noticed now that whoever it was had an Eastern European accent.

"No, no, and no. I'm not shaking down Tony. Go ahead and kill me," Peter said defiantly. In reality, he was terrified of what would happen next.

Suddenly a flat screen descended from the ceiling. The screen showed an image of a face but a very curious face. The nose was flattened and turned up. The skin was sickly pale. Sharp, pointed teeth filled a dark mouth. And the eyes were as red as young cherries. 

"I was human once. . ."


End file.
